(aged for 15 months in 40% new 400-liter French oak barrels): Bright, full ruby. Dark fruit notes of cassis and blackberry are complicated by violet, woodsmoke and peppery herbs on the nose. At once bright and deep, showing a bit more woodsmoky oak than the 2014 Petit Fr?re but also much more supporting mid-palate dark berry intensity and density of material, not to mention a sweeter finish. Lovely harmonious acidity and serious tongue- and toothdusting tannins give this rather primary wine the energy and structure for a graceful evolution in bottle. Bruno Prats, ex-owner of Ch?teau Cos d'Estournel, and Hubert de Bo?ard de Laforest, owner of Ch?teau Ang?lus, still consult here and this in fact is in a very Bordeaux style. I would not be surprised if this dense but lively wine merited an even higher score in the future.